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The most popular wrestling stories for the year 2023

By
Colin Vassallo
-

Over the course of 2023, Wrestling-Online.com published over 3,000 individual stories, covering everything that was happening in WWE, AEW, Impact, and some other promotions.

Some stories were obviously more popular than others and below we take a look in a month-by-month breakdown of the stories that brought the clicks.

JANUARY

FEBRUARY

MARCH

APRIL

MAY

JUNE

JULY

AUGUST

SEPTEMBER

OCTOBER

NOVEMBER

DECEMBER

Nick Khan announces departure of Kevin Dunn from WWE effective immediately

By
Colin Vassallo
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WWE logo

Kevin Dunn, WWE’s Chief of Global TV Distribution and Executive Producer, is officially out of WWE effective today, January 1.

His departure was announced by WWE President Nick Khan in an e-mail to WWE employees sent earlier today, an e-mail which was obtained by PWInsider.com.

Khan wrote in the e-mail that he and Triple H will be meeting the media team at Raw in San Diego at Noon and then meeting the WWE Superstars 30 minutes later to address his departure.

Dunn has worked for WWE for over 40 years and was one of Vince McMahon’s most trusted, and powerful, individuals in WWE. But with McMahon out of power, Dunn’s days were numbered and while he was not effectively pushed out, Dunn gave his notice of departure last week with rumors of unhappiness over certain things following the TKO merger.

Khan put over Dunn for his work, saying he helped build the best production and media unit in the entire sports and entertainment business and said he’ll always be part of the WWE family.

The e-mail in full is below:

After 40+ years of helping to build WWE and, hands down, the best production and media unit in the entire sports and entertainment business, Kevin Dunn, will be leaving our company as of today.

Before WrestleMania 1, Kevin joined Vince at WWF. Many of us remember a pre-WrestleMania WWF – a regional wrestling company that looked like a regional wrestling company. Then we experienced WrestleMania 1, whether live, on closed circuit or years later elsewhere. It was magic. A regional wrestling company had become a global sports entertainment juggernaut. Vince led the way, side by side with Kevin Dunn. When many of us were kids standing in line waiting to play Pac-Man, Kevin was already on the road breaking his back to help build our company.

When you see our product now, there is nothing that comes close to its look or feel – 52 weeks a year, three to four times a week. It is singular and truly special. No other company can or will do that, and that is because of Kevin and our media team’s hard work, smarts, and determination.

We are forever grateful to Kevin. He will always be a part of the WWE family.

Paul and I will be having an in-person meeting with the media team at Raw in San Diego today at 12:00p PT and with our Superstars at 12:30p PT. We look forward to seeing many of you there – and we look forward to crushing 2024 together with all of you.

Nick Khan

Eddie Kingston wins the AEW Triple Crown championship

By
Colin Vassallo
-

Eddie Kingston entered the Continental Classic having to defend the ROH World and NJPW Strong Openweight weight titles as they were going to be merged under the AEW Triple Crown championship…and he did just that!

Kingston overcame Jon Moxley last night at Worlds End following a very hard-hitting 17-minute match in the Continental Classic tournament final to be crowned the inaugural champ.

Kingston came to the final match after getting nine points in the tournament, winning against Andrade El Idolo, Claudio Castagnoli, and Daniel Garcia. He lost two matches, against Bryan Danielson and Brody King, and then defeated Danielson in the Blue League final to advance to the tournament finale.

The champ finished his night by posing with the two titles on his shoulders and was then presented with the Continental Classic title by the referee.

Tony Khan evasive on Jericho’s sexual misconduct allegations

By
Colin Vassallo
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It was not a good day to be Chris Jericho yesterday.

After Nick Hausman of Haus of Wrestling alluded that there are several Chris Jericho sexual misconduct allegation stories that might find their way out in public, the floodgates opened on X, with the rumors of a 2019 allegation brought up again that Jericho tried something with Kylie Rae.

Rae eventually left AEW shortly after and yesterday on X, she replied to one of the threads about Jericho’s misconduct with a heart emoji, seemingly confirming it. There are also rumors that Rae had to sign an NDA to get her release from AEW and that was not very good timing for Jericho who boasted last week to Punk’s lawyer that he never signed an NDA in his life and does not adhere to any employee handbook, a handbook which has a section on sexual misconduct.

Jericho was heavily booed during parts of his entrance and match last night at Worlds End and there were also some signs in the crowd which interestingly enough never got confiscated, including one in full view of the camera which read “WORLDS NDA.” Crowd even chanted “NDA” when Jericho was in the ring.

After the show was over, AEW President Tony Khan had to answer some questions from journalists, and it was someone from USA Today who talked about the elephant in the room.

Asked if Jericho had been investigated at any point during his time in AEW for sexual misconduct, Khan offered the usual “no comment” answer, saying he cannot speak about “unsourced internet rumors” and said that his company is the “safest company in the world,” even though a few months ago he said he was fearing for his life backstage when Punk was there.

Khan said that they have an open door policy when it comes to complaints and they have the best record in safety, noting that anyone can go to him or anyone in the office and they would investigate it.

“Certainly if there was anything that came to light to me I would take it to the disciplinary committee,” Khan said. “I think our disciplinary committee has been doing a great job and everybody knows they have an open line to me or anybody on that committee.”

Unfortunately for Khan, he addressed some of the most serious questions in a wig and sunglasses that were given to him by Toni Storm earlier and kept them on.

Keith Lee pulled out of Worlds End card due to an injury

By
Colin Vassallo
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Keith Lee did not participate in the Worlds End pay-per-view and his long-awaited match against Swerve Strickland had to be postponed due to an injury.

Hours before the show was supposed to go live, Lee took to X to write that he’s been working through an injury since the Dynamite: Grand Slam in September.

“Things have been worse since Final Battle. I am trying to get through today for you guys, but I cannot promise anything,” Lee wrote.

AEW President Tony Khan said during the post-show press conference that the doctors pulled Lee out prior to the show and was replaced by Dustin Rhodes even though Lee wanted to wrestle. Swerve Strickland added that the injury to Lee was unfortunate but he’s no longer waiting.

WWE Chief of Global TV Distribution and Executive Producer Kevin Dunn departing

By
Colin Vassallo
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WWE logo

PWInsider.com is reporting that Kevin Dunn, WWE’s Chief of Global TV Distribution and Executive Producer, is leaving the company after he gave his notice during the week.

Dunn is considered as one of the most powerful man in WWE and has been working for the company since the early 80s, hired by Vince McMahon to oversee all of the company’s television production.

PWInsider adds that Dunn was not overly happy with the changes after the TKO merger and with McMahon out of power, it meant that things didn’t always go his way.

Dunn was most of the time the “fall guy” from fans, especially those online, when they didn’t like how certain things were filmed, especially the unnecessary camera shaking on beatdowns. But despite his many bad habits, Dunn was one of the WWE’s most valuable players with decades of experience in running a high-budget television production.

His loss will certainly be felt in the WWE production trucks and it will probably take more than one person to fill in the massive job.

Andrade El Idolo finished with All Elite Wrestling

By
Colin Vassallo
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Andrade El Idolo is on his way out of AEW and finished up his run last night at the Worlds End pay-per-view in a loss to Miro.

Several industry insiders have reported that Andrade is on his way back to WWE and possibly appearing tomorrow night on the Day 1 Raw from San Diego, California.

Andrade, who joined AEW in June 2021, didn’t have the best time in the company and was out for quite a long time due to an injury and also suspension for a backstage incident. He did have a decent run in the Continental Classic tournament but missed out on the final.

Speaking about him last night, AEW President Tony Khan said that Andrade’s contract was up today and they couldn’t come to an agreement and hoped that his match against Miro would mean that he was leaving the company on a high note.

The Devil and his henchmen unmasked

By
Colin Vassallo
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After months of speculation, The Devil and his Masked Men have been unmasked in the closing stages of the AEW Worlds End pay-per-view.

After the main event between MJF and Samoa Joe was over, four of The Devil’s henchmen rushed to the ring and took both MJF and Adam Cole, who was in MJF’s corner, hostage. One of the henchmen had a chair and was ready to strike but MJF pleaded to hit him instead of Cole.

Then the lights went out and when they were back up, Cole was sitting on a chair in front of the four masked men, who unmasked as Wardlow, Roderick Strong, and the new ROH Tag Team champions Matt Taven and Mike Bennett.

The four attacked MJF and Wardlow hit his powerbomb to lay out the now former champion. Cole then took out the Devil mask as all stood tall over MJF.

Samoa Joe wins the AEW World title at Worlds End

By
Colin Vassallo
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Samoa Joe reached the pinnacle of his AEW career last night after he defeated champion MJF in his backyard of Long Island, New York and became the new AEW World champion.

Joe locked in MJF in the Coquina Clutch and the two recreated the Bret Hart vs Roddy Piper finish from WrestleMania 8, only for Joe to kick out though. Joe got MJF in the Clutch again and MJF went to sleep, with the referee checking MJF’s arms three times, all three times dropping.

The referee then stopped the match and awarded the match to Samoa Joe as a stunned crowd voiced their disapproval.

The 44-year-old has been working for AEW since April 2022 and this is his third title in the promotion, having previously won the ROH TV title and the TNT title twice. It was his second shot at the AEW World title after losing the first one at the Dynamite: Grand Slam episode in September of this year.

Reacting to his win on X, Joe wrote, “Damn, ankles gonna swell all these salty tears I’m drinking.”

Worlds End 2023 pay-per-view results

By
Colin Vassallo
-

Here are the results from the Worlds End pay-per-view which took place live from the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale, New York.

ZERO HOUR: Willow Nightingale defeated Kris Statlander; Killswitch won the 20-man Battle Royale for a future TNT title match; Hook defeated Wheeler Yuta to retain the FTW title.

PPV: Claudio Castagnoli, Bryan Danielson, Mark Briscoe, and Daniel Garcia defeated Brody King, Jay White, Jay Lethal, and Rush in an eight-man tag team match; Miro defeated Andrade El Idolo; Toni Storm defeated Riho to retain the AEW Women’s title; Swerve Strickland defeated Dustin Rhodes; Chris Jericho, Sammy Guevara, Sting, and Darby Allin defeated Ricky Starks, Big Bill, Konosuke Takeshita, and Powerhouse Hobbs in an eight-man tag team match; Julia Hart defeated Abadon in a House Rules match to retain the TBS title; Adam Copeland defeated Christian Cage in a no DQ match to become the new TNT champion; Christian Cage defeated Adam Copeland to become the new TNT champion; Eddie Kingston defeated Jon Moxley by pinfall to become the new AEW Triple Crown champion; Samoa Joe defeated MJF to become the new AEW World champion.

Full betting odds for Worlds End 2023

By
Colin Vassallo
-

In just a few hours, AEW will present its last pay-per-view of the year, Worlds End.

In this post we will check out all the latest odds for the card. Remember, these odds can change by the time the show goes on the air so if you’re betting with real money, be careful.

MJF and Samoa Joe will headline the show in a match for the AEW World title. MJF is 1/2 favorite to keep the title while Joe is 3/2 to walk out of Long Island as the new champion.

Who will be the first AEW Triple Crown champion? It’s down to Eddie Kingston and Jon Moxley in the final of the Continental Classic tournament. Kingston is 1/10 big favorite to win while Moxley is 5/1.

Toni Storm puts her AEW Women’s title on the lien against the first-ever AEW Women’s champion, Riho. Storm is 1/100 favorite in this match while Riho is 12/1 and probably not getting that belt back anytime soon.

A no disqualification match will pit best friends and better enemies Christian Cage and Adam Copeland for the TNT title. Copeland is favorite to win his first AEW gold with 1/3 odds while Cage is 2/1 to retain.

A match one year in the making will feature Swerve Strickland taking on Keith Lee. Strickland is 1/8 and favorite to continue his rise in AEW while Lee is 9/2 for the upset.

The TBS title will be defended with champion Julia Hart the overwhelming favorite to retain with 1/100 odds against Abadon who is 12/1.

Miro and Andrade El Idolo will go one-on-one tonight and with Andrade’s contract rumored to be up and heading out, it’s only natural that Miro is favorite with 1/4 odds while El Idolo is 5/2.

An eight-man tag team match will see Mark Briscoe, Daniel Garcia, Claudio Castagnoli, and Bryan Danielson take on Brody King, Jay White, Jay Lethal, and Rush. The BCC and company are favorites with 2/3 odds while their opponents are 11/10.

With Kenny Omega out, Jericho is now teaming with Sammy Guevara, Sting, and Darby Allin against Big Bill, Ricky Starks, Powerhouse Hobbs, and Konosuke Takeshita in another eight-man tag which was thrown together quickly. The faces are favorites with 1/10 odds and the heels are 5/1 for the victory.

The FTW title is also on the line in the Zero Hour show and Hook is 1/15 favorite to keep it while BCC member Wheeler Yuta is 6/1.

The top 10 wrestling stories of 2023

By
Colin Vassallo
-

It has been a wild year. Just when you think 2022 was top, 2023 barged in like a runaway train and gave us some memorable, and not so memorable, moments.

AEW suffered some setbacks despite a very successful All In which shattered all records. Backstage issues continued to plaque the company and another altercation led to the firing of their biggest star.

Meanwhile over at WWE, Vince McMahon forced his way back in, gave up his control to Endeavor and business shot up with record crowds, gates, and merchandise…not to mention a few surprises along the way.

Below we detail our top 10 stories of 2023. The ranking was done based on market effect, surprise factor, importance of the news, and of course, popularity.

Here are Wrestling-Online’s top 10 stories of 2023!

#10: Roman’s empire comes crumbling down as The Bloodline implodes

Many called in cinema. The Bloodline was the best thing going on WWE television in 2022 but 2023 started with a major hiccup for the faction. First, it was Sami Zayn who finally turned on them, then Zayn came close to winning the title from Roman at Elimination Chamber. Then Zayn and Kevin Owens took the Undisputed WWE Tag Team titles from The Usos at WrestleMania. Jimmy turned on Roman, Jey turned on Roman and his brother Solo, civil war happened at Money In The Bank and Jey then came mighty close of dethroning Roman at SummerSlam…until Jimmy turned on him too! The current status of this unfolding drama remains uncertain, but one undeniable fact is that Roman’s once-solid empire now appears less indestructible.

#9: A Hollywood strike allows John Cena to return to WWE television for two months

When John Cena returned for a match at WrestleMania against Austin Theory, we all thought it would be a while since we’d see him again in a WWE ring. Cena surprised fans in London with an unannounced appearance at Money In The Bank to hype a WrestleMania in London, but no one was ready for what was coming next. A Hollywood strike prevented actors and everyone else from working and Cena returned to WWE for two full months, appearing every week on Smackdown and premium live events. Cena’s impactful return concluded with a loss to Solo Sikoa at Crown Jewel, perfectly aligning with the Hollywood strike’s conclusion. Cena’s two-month stint significantly bolstered WWE’s business, contributing to increased live event attendance and ratings.

#8: After 25 years, Edge says goodbye to WWE and immediately joins All Elite Wrestling

It’s not often you get what we call “lifers” at a company. Edge was thought to be one for WWE but the Rated-R Superstar had another idea. After his last match on his WWE contract in August in his hometown of Toronto, Edge said he had a WWE offer in the mail but was not sure what to do yet. Over a month later, we found out his next move: All Elite Wrestling. Adam Copeland made his debut at WrestleDream, ushering in the next chapter of his career with the iconic Metalingus song. You think you know him!

#7: Mercedes Mone` makes her debut for New Japan Pro-Wrestling and wins the IWGP Women’s title

It’s no secret that Sasha Banks was one of the most popular WWE Superstars ever. So after she walked out of the company in May, the big question was where would she land. She always wanted to try out Japan and after a lot of hype and speculation, the former WWE Women’s champion made her grand debut at Wrestle Kingdom in January as Mercedes Mone. A month later she took down Kairi to become the new IWGP Women’s champion but her reign didn’t last long. She went for the NJPW Strong Women’s title after her loss but broke her ankle during the match. Being a seasoned pro, Mone changed the ending of the match on the fly, allowing her opponent to win instead. She spent the rest of 2023 on the sidelines and out of public view…until she appeared in the stands at All In in Wembley.

#6: After retiring a few months earlier, Vince McMahon forces his way back in WWE to oversee a sale and Stephanie McMahon quits

Vince McMahon retired from WWE in July 2023 after several allegations of misconduct. We all thought we’d seen the last of Vince, but he had another trick up his sleeve. Being the absolute majority owner of WWE, the former Chairman and CEO literally forced his way back into the company, appointing two other members of the board that supported him. He said he was back to oversee the sale and if he wasn’t involved, he was not going to sign off on anything business-related to WWE, including the new TV media rights. Vince was re-installed as Executive Chairman of the Board of Directors and his daughter Stephanie, who returned to the company in July to take over as Chairwoman and co-CEO, quit the company for good as she did not want to work with her father anymore.

#5: AEW sells over 80,000 tickets for All In, smashing all records at Wembley Stadium

No one believed that AEW would be able to sell the majority of Wembley Stadium. No one but Tony Khan. The young AEW President literally went all in for All In, opening up all of Wembley Stadium for sale. And fans in Europe flocked to the English capital for AEW’s first-ever show outside North America. It was AEW’s first stadium show and one which exceeded all expectations. The company sold over 80,000 tickets to the show and generated one of the largest gates in the history of professional wrestling. It was so good that AEW announced a year ahead that they would be returning to the iconic stadium in Summer of 2024.

#4: CM Punk gets into an altercation with Jack Perry and is fired by AEW President Tony Khan

All In was definitely a newsworthy show, perhaps none bigger than the backstage altercation between CM Punk and Jack Perry. Perry taunted Punk during his pre-show match, looking at the camera and telling Punk indirectly to “cry me a river” after real glass was used in a spot. That irked Punk, who was ready backstage for Perry. A fight ensued, Punk allegedly even lunged at Tony Khan. There was chaos and Punk threatened to quit there before his match. Eventually cooler heads prevailed but that was the last match for CM Punk in AEW as a few days later, Khan fired Punk just days before the All Out pay-per-view in Chicago, bringing to an end a tumultuous relationship between Punk and AEW.

#3: Former WWE champion Bray Wyatt passes away at age 36

On August 24, the wrestling world was shocked to learn that Bray Wyatt had passed away at age 36. The announcement came from WWE Chief Content Officer Triple H on X and the entire wrestling industry lost it. Tributes poured in from every corner of the globe and both WWE and AEW held tributes to Wyatt and even Terry Funk, who had just passed away a day earlier. The WWE Smackdown show the next day was all about Wyatt and the incredible effect he left on the world of professional wrestling. The business lost one of its greatest ever minds, but his memory will live on forever. Follow the buzzards!

#2: After nearly 10 years away, hell froze over and CM Punk makes a surprise return to WWE at Survivor Series in Chicago

After CM Punk got himself fired from AEW the big question was: Will he or will he not? Out of the blue, WWE was subtly dropping several CM Punk hints on WWE television and everyone thought the unimaginable was happening. Survivor Series happened to be right in Chicago and with a record crowd inside the Allstate Arena where even the stage had to be removed, everyone was waiting for CM Punk. The show ended, the trademark logo appeared on screen, and then…cue in Cult of Personality. The roof was blown off as CM Punk made his way out in a WWE arena for the first time in 10 years. They say time heals all wounds. On a day when hell froze over, CM Punk triumphantly made his return to WWE.

#1: Vince McMahon relinquishes control over WWE and Endeavor takes over, merging WWE with UFC to create TKO Group Holdings Inc

No one ever imagined a time when WWE was not owned by a McMahon. After many decades under the McMahon family, on September 12, World Wrestling Entertainment officially became a subsidiary of TKO Group Holdings Inc., an Endeavor majority-owned company. WWE is now joined by the UFC under the same umbrella, creating a powerhouse sports and entertainment company with billions as market value. McMahon no longer remained in charge, although he serves as the company’s Executive Chairman, and was later kicked off creative by Endeavor and TKO CEO Ari Emanuel. After decades of putting out his competition, Vince finally found his match!

WWE closes 2023 with one more big show at Kia Forum tonight

By
Colin Vassallo
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WWE Live

WWE will close off 2023 with a final non-televised live event at the Kia Forum in Inglewood, California tonight where over 13,000 fans have got tickets for the show.

This is the second-largest house show this year so far unless it does a massive walkup and manages to beat Madison Square Garden’s Boxing Day show which had over 15,000.

The show got a big boost in tickets when it was announced that CM Punk would be appearing on the show against Dominik Mysterio.

A lot of important people from the television industry are expected to be present at the show as WWE continues its talks for Monday Night Raw television rights.

Worlds End 2023 live on pay-per-view tonight

By
Colin Vassallo
-

Live from the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale, New York, AEW presents Worlds End on pay-per-view. The full card is as follows:

PPV: MJF vs Samoa Joe for the AEW World title; Toni Storm vs Riho for the AEW Women’s title; Christian Cage vs Adam Copeland in a No DQ match for the TNT title; Julia Hart vs Abadon for the TBS title; Eddie Kingston vs Jon Moxley for the AEW Triple Crown title; Swerve Strickland vs Keith Lee; Ricky Starks, Big Bill, Konosuke Takeshita, and Powerhouse Hobbs vs Chris Jericho, Sammy Guevara, Sting, and Darby Allin; Miro vs Andrade El Idolo; Claudio Castagnoli, Bryan Danielson, Mark Briscoe, and Daniel Garcia vs Brody King, Jay White, Jay Lethal, and Rush.

ZERO HOUR: Hook vs Wheeler Yuta for the FTW title; Kris Statlander vs Willow Nightingale; 20-man Battle Royale with the winner earning a future shot at the TNT title.

The Zero Hour kicks off a 7PM ET on AEW’s social media properties while the pay-per-view will start at 8PM ET on Bleacher Report and Triller TV internationally.

AEW Worlds End 2023 predictions

By
Paul Hemming
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Full disclosure, I’m writing this at 3am off some pina coladas.  Late (in the sense of the hour) because thoughts are racing.  Late (in the sense of proximity to the show) because I just do not care about it, I doubt I’m going to watch it.

There’ve been Dynamites with better cards (last January 11th – Hangman/Mox, Danielson/Takeshita, Elite/Death Triangle – tell me any of those wouldn’t be better than the majority of this show?).

But nor did I want to leave people without a preview at all.

So this will not be as detailed as usual and I’m throwing out objectivity.  These are just my thoughts on the matches with predictions.

Read on MacDuff.  Or whatever your name happens to be.

MJF vs Samoa Joe (AEW Title)

I’m interested in the Devil reveal in the way people are when they see a terrible accident: I hope those involved aren’t too badly hurt.

Ideally it’ll be MJF, because the reveal isn’t going to be satisfying or make sense anyway.  He can go back heel and stop being a lame dork who kisses the crowd’s ass and blasts foes’ Google trends.

If Max isn’t going heel, for god’s sake get the belt off him so that the goofy crap he’s been experimenting with for the past six months is at least kept away from the title.  Joe can have a nice run as a killer who reestablishes it as a serious enterprise before handing it to Swerve/Ospreay in better shape than he found it.

And unfortunately most viewers are going to spend most of this match wondering when Black Scorpion II/the leader of New Retribution comes out to interfere.  So won’t be into the action or buy any finishes until that takes place.

Oh and I have to throw out the possibility that the Bucks are among the Goons.

They went away as heels, were rumored to be coming back in a heel faction and their EVP status would make easy work of explaining the otherwise convoluted audio/video hijacking.  And would fit with Cole/Britt in storyline.  And they were feuding with Bullet Club Gold not all that long before the attack on Jay White (yes this story’s been going that long).

Where this theory falls apart is the attack on Hangman.  Unless he’s in on it too?  It’d be stupid but so will every other outcome.

WINNER: Prolly MJF

Jon Moxley vs Eddie Kingston (Continental Classic Final)

This should be fantastic.  Kingston’s told a brilliant story with his words and wrestling throughout the Continental Classic (he and Danielson the clear MVPs).  Todd Martin called him the ‘emotional heart’ of the tournament and he’s not wrong.  They took it home with stellar mic work Wednesday.

Kingston winning is predictable.  But we rarely complain when the guy we like in a book or movie wins in the end.  As long as the story’s well told.  And it has been.  And the crowd in New York will go bonkers for their guy.  As he becomes the first Modern Garbled Marketing Jargon Champion.

WINNER: Eddie Kingston

Andrade El Idolo vs Miro

Does anyone understand the Miro/Perry story?  He’s like a 50’s husband who wants his wife to stay home?  She was briefly a seemingly manipulative bitch who was using managing others to motivate her husband, smiling broadly as he mowed down her would-be clients.

Until becoming a serious manager who puts her actual client Andrade over as the special talent he indeed is.

Could be good in the ring: Andrade’s been on-form lately and that should continue for his 2023 pay-per-view debut.

WINNER: Whoever’s contract lapses last? Probably Andrade since he’s at least had tv time and beat Danielson

Chris Jericho, Sammy Guevara, Darby Allin & Sting

vs

Big Bill, Ricky Starks, Will Hobbs & Kyle Fletcher

You do not have paintings made featuring your colleague’s infant being lovingly protected.  Apparently.  Especially when the infant’s father has such good friends he can turn on them and still have them help him.

And hey, there’s still time to squeeze one more turn into 2023.  Do it for the Wight-ster.

WINNER: Sting’s not losing before his last match, unless the faces have a falling out leading to said last match for the tag titles

Bryan Danielson, Claudio Castagnoli, Mark Briscoe, Daniel Garcia

vs

Rush, Jay White, Brody King & Jay Lethal

Anyone familiar with drinking culture in the UK will be aware of the term ‘shit-mix’.  You grab any booze you can, chuck it together and give it a stir.  This is it applied to wrestling.

Hopefully someone young can at least emerge from the tournament’s fallout with a victory.

WINNER: Danielson et al

Toni Storm vs Riho (Women’s Title)

This is Riho’s first pay-per-view appearance in four years.  *Whispers* So she’s not winning.  Since she’ll probably leave again shortly till summer anyway.

Let’s hope Toni leaves the serving trays backstage in lieu of her working boots.  If she does, this could be very good.

WINNER: Toni Storm

Abadon vs Julia Hart (TBS Title)

I have nothing to say.

WINNER: Julia Hart

Adam Copeland vs Christian Cage (No DQ, TNT Title)

These guys got me into their last clash with stellar mic work.  Then someone’s mom decided the match.  A lot of people seem to believe Cage has raised the prestige of his title since winning it.  And I’d have agreed until WrestleDream.  After which it became forgotten for two months.

The only sensible way this ends is when Mrs. Saurus gets her revenge too right?  Either that or Copeland wins since otherwise he’d look a moron for arranging a no disqualification match with a guy who always cheats and has a posse.

WINNER: Adam Copeland

Keith Lee vs Swerve Strickland

When Florence dumped the Julian Calendar in favor of the Gregorian, time ‘advanced’ about two weeks.  And some of the peasants revolted, asking for their fortnight back.

Seriously.

But they’ve got nothing on AEW owner Tony Khan, who seems to believe it’s December 2022.  Since this is the ‘right time’ for this match to take place.

And yes there’s an argument that at least they’re doing it and finishing up the story.  Alternatively, there’s one that says eating rotten food instead of binning it doesn’t actually do you any good.

This is beneath Swerve at this stage.

WINNER: Swerve Strickland

Wheeler Yuta vs Hook (FTW Title)

Back in July, Hook vs Jack Perry for this very belt merely opened Dynamite.  About six weeks after Perry had been in the AEW Title mix too.  This is a Rampage match for a title the company ‘don’t recognize’, except that they do.  Frequently.

I also have almost no idea what this is about despite watching two of the tv shows on a weekly basis.

WINNER: Hook

If the CC Final and Devil reveal were in a solid block I’d be tempted to watch but nothing else here does a single thing for me.  I hope it does for you.  Honestly it’s much healthier if you enjoy the product instead of getting exasperated by it.

Have a good weekend and enjoy if you’re enjoying.

Shotzi gets married in Las Vegas before WWE live event

By
Colin Vassallo
-

WWE Superstar Shotzi posted on Instagram that she got married yesterday before the WWE non-televised live event in Las Vegas.

The WWE crew were in Vegas for a show at the MGM Grand Garden Arena and Shotzi wrote that when she found out that she would be performing there, she and her now-husband decided to elope before the show.

“It was very spontaneous and so perfectly us. I loved every second of it,” the 31-year-old real name Ashley Urbanski wrote.

She added that she will post “something a little mushier” later about the wedding as she was now busy for “an action packed reception” which was the house show at the MGM.

In typical Shotzi fashion, she then wrestled her match during the show in her wedding dress!

She got engaged to her long-time partner in July of this year.

Dynamite rating for 12/27/2023

By
Colin Vassallo
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The New Year’s Smash episode of Dynamite this week drew 843,000 viewers, up 61,000 viewers from the prior week. The show had a 0.31 rating in the 18-49 demo, the best number since October 17. Cable rankings are not available as of press time. (Ratings credit: Wrestlenomics)

Emotional night for Sami Zayn in Laval as son watches him wrestle for the first time

By
Colin Vassallo
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It was an emotional night for Sami Zayn when he appeared at the WWE non-televised live event in Laval, Quebec, on Thursday night.

Zayn, who got an unexpected assistance from the unadvertised Kevin Owens on the show, said that the night was very special for him because it was the first time that his son got to see him wrestle.

Talking to the crowd after the match, Zayn said that he’s been coming to Montreal for 10 years with WWE and every time he is there he thinks that nothing could top it the next time around.

He said that Elimination Chamber this year was a highlight and again thought that another return here would not be more special than that…but he was wrong as on Thursday, it was even more special for him.

“For those of you that come to the show, you’ll see these guys right here who have been supporting me all these years. My family in the front row right here,” he said. “But tonight is even more special, because you may know this about me by now, I’m a little bit of a private person. I keep some of this stuff to myself. Some of you might not know this, but I have a little boy. And he’s this cutie right here in the red shirt.”

WWE cameras then showed his son on the big screen as he waved to the crowd. Sami said that when he’s at home, he’s just “baba” and not a WWE Superstar.

“This young man right here has never seen me wrestle. He knows nothing about what I do. Tonight is the first time ever that he sees me in this ring,” Zayn said.

Triple H teases appearance from former WWE champion on Day 1 Raw

By
Colin Vassallo
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Triple H has teased that a former WWE Champion will be appearing on the Day 1 Raw in a post on X.

“Not going to confirm or deny the rumors of a former WWE Champion appearing at #WWERaw Day One… but I will say to stay tuned,” the WWE Chief Content Officer wrote.

WWE rarely acknowledges rumors so for them to do something like this it must be pretty much confirmed.

Reports suggest that this particular former WWE champion is not currently signed to WWE.

Report: WWE and Mercedes Mone no longer in negotiations for return

By
Colin Vassallo
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Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful Wrestling is reporting that WWE is no longer in negotiations with Mercedes Mone regarding a return to the company after both sides failed to come to an agreement on a new deal while a source suggested that she is set to show up somewhere else “imminently.”

Mone was reportedly asking for a lot of money, way more than what WWE paid Charlotte Flair in her latest deal which was one of the largest contracts for a female star.

She has recently been posting a lot of WWE-related stories on her Instagram, including a latest one which showed her in front of a poster featuring Triple H. She is known for top-level trolling on the Internet and all the very obvious signs suggested that she would not be making a comeback.

Mone last appeared on television at the All In pay-per-view in London where she was shown sitting in the crowd. At the time, she and AEW were also in talks but last month there was another report which said all plans were put on hold.

AEW has the Worlds End pay-per-view tonight so we will know soon if that “imminent” is regarding to AEW.

Mone, as Sasha Banks, walked out of WWE along with Naomi, in May 2022. Naomi went on to join TNA Wrestling while she wrestled for New Japan and Stardom.

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